'Outside, I'm in Spain, inside it's Mongolia'

Sara Evans

Outside, the branches of a giant Andalusian cork tree wrap themselves around my yurt like protective arms. Inside, I'm transported to another place altogether - suddenly, I'm not in Spain anymore.

Fairground bright and pretty as a carousel, traditional Mongolian motifs in green, blue and gold embellish burnt-orange wall beams made from willow. Stretched tautly from a domed transparent ceiling, with intricate, painted carvings and views direct to the sky, white canvas drops heavily to the ground. Raised and dark-stained wooden floorboards, made soft with sheep-skin rugs, support an exotically dressed double bed fit for a Mongolian princess. Velvet cushions, the colour of clementines, sit on an elaborate tapestry bedspread, crisp cotton sheets hiding beneath it.

From the bed, with the yurt's little wooden doors open, it's not Mongolia's Gobi desert that I see, but the dramatic Grazelema mountains that encircle the wild-flower meadows, olive groves and cork forests of Cortes de la Frontera, a traditional white-walled Andalusian village in southern Spain.

It's in one of these groves you'll find the Hoopoe Yurt Hotel. Not really a hotel, nor a campsite, this is a three-yurt (two Mongolian, one Afghani) rural idyll where bohemian splendour meets The Good Life.

The eco-chic brainchild of British-born Ed and Henrietta Hunt, the management of the Hoopoe is guided by an eco-friendly ethos. For example, electricity is solar-powered, while the water in the swimming pool comes from a local spring and is not chlorinated.

In front of each yurt, a private meadow, fragrant with herbs and flowers, is left free and uncultivated. Outside my yurt, I'm in wild, natural Spain helping conserve the environment; inside I'm back in the Gobi desert waiting for my Mongolian prince to come home.

Staying there

A double yurt costs £60, including breakfast for two, and £20 per mini yurt for children under 10, including breakfast for one. A supplement of £15 per extra bed is payable in main or mini yurts, including breakfast for one. Ed and Henrietta Hunt also provide home-cooked evening meals and packed lunches on request. It is also possible to book massages and excursions into the neighbouring countryside and mountains.